AFL Ladder
A new AFL season is upon us with the race for the 2026 AFL Premiership set to be as hot as ever! 18 clubs will duke it out over a 24-week home and away season this year to determine who gets the right to play in the finals and make their case for the 2026 Premiership. Check out the 2026 AFL ladder below!
Before You Bet will provide a full 2026 AFL ladder for our readers, which will be updated at the conclusion of every round of the AFL season so you can keep track of the progress of your club.
Remember, we will also be providing AFL betting tips for EVERY game in the 2026 AFL season, so be sure to head to our AFL Tips page for regular tips and previews in the lead up to each round.
2026 AFL Ladder (to be updated after Round 1)
| Pos |
Club |
W |
D |
L |
% |
Points |
| 1st |
Adelaide |
18 |
0 |
5 |
139.3 |
72 |
| 2nd |
Geelong |
17 |
0 |
6 |
141.5 |
68 |
| 3rd |
Brisbane |
16 |
1 |
6 |
114.2 |
66 |
| 4th |
Collingwood |
16 |
0 |
7 |
122.4 |
64 |
| 5th |
GWS Giants |
16 |
0 |
7 |
115.3 |
64 |
| 6th |
Fremantle |
16 |
0 |
7 |
109.0 |
64 |
| 7th |
Hawthorn |
15 |
0 |
8 |
120.9 |
60 |
| 8th |
Western Bulldogs |
14 |
0 |
9 |
137.0 |
56 |
| |
| 9th |
Gold Coast * |
14 |
0 |
8 |
120.1 |
56 |
| 10th |
Sydney |
12 |
0 |
11 |
97.0 |
48 |
| 11th |
Carlton |
9 |
0 |
14 |
96.7 |
36 |
| 12th |
St Kilda |
9 |
0 |
14 |
88.5 |
36 |
| 13th |
Port Adelaide |
9 |
0 |
14 |
79.8 |
36 |
| 14th |
Melbourne |
7 |
0 |
16 |
93.3 |
28 |
| 15th |
Essendon * |
6 |
0 |
16 |
71.8 |
24 |
| 16th |
North Melbourne |
5 |
1 |
17 |
76.3 |
22 |
| 17th |
Richmond |
5 |
0 |
18 |
66.0 |
20 |
| 18th |
West Coast |
1 |
0 |
22 |
60.1 |
4 |
How the AFL Ladder Works
The AFL ladder is a pretty simple one to understand. Teams play 23 games throughout the home and away season, and record 4 points for a win, 0 for a loss. A draw would result in both teams recieving 2 points, a rare occorence in AFL.
The tiebreaker if two teams are locked on the same amount of points is percentage points, which is a simple equation of points scored divided by points allowed. At the end of the home and away season, the top eight teams will play in the finals.
AFL Finals
Since 1998, only one team has won the AFL Premiership after finishing outside the top four. It's extremely important to do so if you have aspirations of winning the flag, as a top four spot at the end of the home and away season gives you a double chance should you lose your first final.
In 2026, the AFL will introduce a "Wildcard Round" for the first time - effectively extending the finals from the top 8 to the top 10. Teams in 9th and 10th place will effectively have a chance to win their way into the Elimination Finals the following week. The system has created much debate, however there are a lot of benefits. It gives footy fans two extra games on what was previous a bye week before the finals, and more interest for more fans late in the season as teams try to hang onto a Top 10 spot. It makes life harder for 7th and 8th place to win a premiership as they now have an extra game to play, effectively giving an advantage to finish inside the Top 6.
After the Wildcard Round, then finals resorts to the previous finals system. The top four teams after the home and away season play off against each other in Qualification Finals, while the next four teams will face Elimination Finals. The two winners of the Qualification Finals get a week off and head straight through to the Preliminary Finals, while the losers square off against the winners of the Elimination Finals. The Winners of the Preliminary Finals will advance to the Grand Final where the Premiers will be crowned!
Check out the graphic below for a visual representation of how the AFL Finals work.
